President Donald Trump promised to “drill, baby, drill” on the presidential campaign trail.
It’s not going to bail him out of this oil crisis
spurred by the war he started in Iran.
Trump and Republicans last year aggressively ramped up policies favorable to fossil fuels after romping to an electoral victory in 2024 on a promise to lower the cost of living, including by quelling gas prices.
Their signature domestic policy bill, known as the “one big beautiful” tax and spending measure, opened up swaths of new land to oil and gas leasing. The administration has moved to slash regulations that the fossil fuel industry views as hurdles. And it has pursued an aggressive leasing schedule to get more rigs operating on federal lands and waters.
